GIOVENTU

The first edition of the “Talented Young Italians” Award has acknowledged talented young Italians who excel in their careers working in the UK, and who are not only leaders but an example of leadership to other young people. The award is an initiative of the Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the UK - in collaboration with the Italian Embassy in London and with the patronage of H.E. Pasquale Terracciano, the Italian Ambassador.

From this year Italian students are going to study one of the subjects in their curriculum in a foreign language. It’s called “Content and Language Integrated Learning” (CLIL) and it has been introduced in other European countries from the 90’s.
The CLIL will be effective in the third, fourth and fifth year of “linguistico” and in the fifth year of “licei” and “istituti tecnici”.

Italian teenagers are not good in Financial subjects. More than a fifth of Italian teens tested, failed to reach the most basic level set by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). An assessment of 15-year-olds’ financial literacy of the OECD showed that 21.7 percent of the Italian students quizzed, could, at best, make only simple financial decisions and recognize the difference between needs and wants. The figure was markedly higher than the OECD average of 15.3 percent.

According to a research of the University “La sapienza” di Roma, too long Summer vacations are detrimental for learning.
Italian students have the longest vacation in Europe and apparently this leads to a drop in learning, especially if the family environment is impoverished and parents can’t help with homework.

The Italian football team has returned home. After losing 1-0 against Uruguay they’ve been eliminated from the world cup at the first round. The last time Italy was kicked out for two consecutive times at the first round was in 1962 (Chile) and 1966 (England).

The 2014 games were once again a great success despite being dogged by dreary wet weather. Finchley was the victorious team winning the OGI Padre Russo shield for the 6th time, AS Londra Sud won the Les Rickard Trophy and St Peters won the Sportsmanship Award. The event, as usual, demonstrated the great benefits of an inclusive community displaying camaraderie, spirit and friendly, but fierce, competiveness. Perhaps the icing on the cake was the closing ceremony with presentation of gold, silver and bronze medals by Italian football legend Marco Tardelli, celebrity chefs Antonio Carluccio and Giorgio Locatelli and Consul General Massimiliano Mazzanti.

A recent Coldiretti research revealed that Italian wine consumption fell to its lowest since 1861. Italians drink much less than before. In 2013, Italians drank 22 million hectolitres of wine, less than the Americans and the French. The paradox is that, according to the study of Mediobanca, the industry continues to grow abroad.
So if Italian wine abroad grows, increases turnover and employment, on the other hand domestic front consumption is collapsing. The wine purchases of Italian families fell by 7 per cent in 2013 to the lowest record since the Unification of Italy in 1861.

Svimez (the association for the development of the South of Italy) recorded a decrease of 300 thousand entrepreneurs and self employed people in the last 5 years. The surprising fact is that there were some encouraging signs coming from enterprising initiatives in the south of the country, even though the growth forecast for 2014 does not show a positive trend of growth. According to Svimez, 64% of the citizens of the South, which in 2011 have left the South for a region of Centre-North had a degree or a medium-high diploma. These people don’t return to the south and don’t produce wealth for the south.
The magazine “L’espersso” has recently reported the stories of young people between 25 and 35 who resisted to the crisis, and instead of going abroad invented jobs for themselves and others. In this case the cheaper cost of living in the South, consequence of a poorer economy, has become a competitive factor.

A growing wave of technologists, researchers and entrepreneurs are leaving Italy. Faced with soaring unemployment and declining economic activity, young Italians are following previous generations in seeking their fortunes abroad, disillusioned by an economy in which graduates must often take menial jobs. Youth unemployment, at just below 37%, is the highest since records began 20 years ago.